You or your organization can make submissions to the Ontario Government's poverty reduction strategy on the Growing Stronger Together website. See an earlier PovNet story for more information about poverty reduction strategy.

Various community groups are keeping a close eye on the ongoing consultation of the Ontario Cabinet Committee on Poverty Reduction. For a variety of informed viewpoints on Ontario's poverty reduction strategy and consultation, read the following:

• OCAP: Poverty reduction committee 'a distraction', an interview with an OCAP member
• Poverty Watch Ontario is a website that maintains a log of community events on poverty reduction and attempts to monitor cross-Ontario activity on the poverty reduction.
• OCAP - The Ontario Liberals and 'Poverty Reduction': Are they Trying or Lying?
• Toronto Star editorial - "Why we must talk about race when we talk about poverty"
• 25-in-5: Network for Poverty Reduction - Recent news, media and resources on poverty reduction.

• Ontario Budget 2008
• CBC - "Ontario budget funds modest tax cuts, retraining program"
• Wellesley Institute - "WI backgrounder: 15 times more money for roads than for homes?"
• CCPA - Ontario Budget 2008: The Last of the Easy Budgets (PDF file)
• ODSP Action Coalition - attached (doc file)

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ODSP Action Coalition press release March 25 2008.doc	42.5 KB

Ontario's provincial government has announced a new poverty reduction strategy including a dental plan for low income residents, enhancement to the Student Nutrition Program and $100 million to repair affordable housing units. Follow the links for more information:

• Ontario Governmnet Backgrounder - McGuinty Government Announces Three Priority Programs to Kickstart Poverty Reduction Strategy:
• Income Security Advocacy Centre Response - Premier's Poverty Reduction Announcement - "A Good Start, but a Long Way to Go"(in PDF)
• The Star's War on Poverty series
• Opportunities Waterloo Region - Poverty Reduction Strategies
• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health - "Provincial strategy cannot defeat poverty without addressing mental health and addictions"
• Ontario Campaign 2000 - A Poverty Plan for Ontario – What Actions can you take in Spring 2008?(in PDF)

Federal Budget 2008 Resources:

• Federal Budget 2008
• Wellesley Institute's Federal Pre-Budget Backgrounder
• CCPA Federal Budget 2008 Analysis
• CCPA Alternative Federal Budget 2008
• L'Alternative budgetaire pour le gouvernement fédéral en 2008
• CBC Federal Budget 2008 : In Depth
• More links on the Canadian Social Research Newsletter March 8th, 2008 edition
• Canadian Labour Congress Analysis of the 2008 Federal Budget

Some articles and links related to poverty and the 2008 BC Budget:

• BC's 2008 Budget
• Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance 2008 Budget Report (in PDF)
• The Tyee - "Unspent Millions in Housing Fund" and "'Landmark' Green Budget, with Some Brown Spots"
• Federation of Post Secondary Educators - BC Budget 2008: An Exercise in Distraction
• SPARC report - Still Left Behind (in PDF) - A comparison of Living Costs and Employment Assistance Rates in British Columbia. Report findings indicate that families and individuals receiving income assistance from the province of B.C. are not able to meet their minimal monthly living costs.
• CBC article - "B.C. budget leaves welfare recipients in poverty: report"

The Toronto Disaster Relief Committee (TDRC) and the Canadian Peace Alliance (CPA) have launched a Housing Not War campaign to demand that funding the federal government has directed towards war and militarism go instead towards housing and a "1% solution." TDRC says that if an additional 1% of the federal budget was allocated towards social housing, it would bring spending up to $4 billion per year. You can sign the Housing not War Declaration online.

As the new fiscal year approaches the BC Liberal Government must decide where they will put their surplus. The moment of truth approaches - will the take the easy way out and put the money into tax cuts and other popular programs, or will they be courageous and spend their surplus in ways which would substantively reduce poverty. For more information read the article in The Tyee.

As Manitoba gets set to vote at the end of May, an article in Canadian Dimension, says poverty is the missing issue in Manitoba's election, despite the fact that Manitoba continues to have one of the highest rates of child and family poverty in the country.

Information on the 2007 Manitoba Budget

• 2007 Manitoba Budget Highlights
• 2007 Manitoba Budget Summary (in PDF)
• CBC article - "Manitoba initiatives aim to break down 'welfare wall'"
• Canadian Dimension article - "Manitoba Budget: A timid blueprint-NDP is expert at thinking inside the box"

Information and Analysis on the PEI Budget:

• 2007 PEI Budget Address
• Highlights of the PEI Provincial Budget (in PDF)
• CBC article - "Disability advocate fears increase not enough"
• CBC article - "Opposition doubts surplus"
• PEI Disability Alert says that the increase in spending for the Disability Support Program is not enough to support all people with disabilities on the island.

The Ontario Liberal Government released the 2007 Ontario Budget (available in multiple languages). Some highlights and critiques of the Ontario Budget:

Highlights

• A two-per-cent increase in Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program payments;
• Increasing the hourly minimum wage to $10.25 in 2010;
• Enhancing child care through an additional $25 million in 2007-08, growing to $50 million in ongoing support starting in 2008-09;
• New affordable housing programs;
• Giving pensioners enhanced access to their locked-in accounts and permitting pension income splitting; and
• Increased benefits for about 155,000 injured workers.

Critiques

• Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives: A short summary of a budget that’s short on anything new (in PDF)
• DAWN - Ontario DisAbled Women's Network Ontario 2007 Budget Responses
• CUPE: Federal Budget 2007: A Bag of Tricks (one minute animation)
• Wellesley Institute: Ontario budget 2007: Thanks for the thoughts, but where’s the money?

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives has posted a 2007 Alternative Federal Budget.

P.E.I Senior Citizens' Federation is disappointed that the federal budget will do nothing for the 52 per cent of Island seniors who live below the poverty line. Read more in the CBC article, "P.E.I. seniors disappointed by budget."

The federal government has promised an increase of $21 million for First Nations in this years budget. This is a far cry from the $5 billion dollars promised in the Kelowna Accord which the Conservative government scrapped last year. The BC Union of Indian Chiefs says this will further entrench the poverty of First Nations people and he warns that this will likely result in protest and conflict this summer. Read more in a CBC article, "Budget day a 'black day' for First Nations," read a statement by the Assembly of First Nations - "First Nations not included in a 'Stronger, Better' Canada" and a statement from the United Native Nations, "A Step Backward: United Native Nations Responds to Federal Budget."

The BC government called their recently announced 2007 Budget the housing budget but many critics including the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives are asking where's the housing? Some highlights and critiques of the budget:

• $1.5 million dollar tax cut.
  The government claims the tax cut will make it easier for everyone to pay for their housing but critics say the tax cut will not really have much effect on low and middle income earners, and it has nothing do with housing. People could easily spend their money on child care, utilities or transportation.
• $250 million housing endowment fund to support innovative housing projects.
  According to the CCPA, this means the province is going to take $250 million out of the 2006/07 surplus to fund $10 million of new initiatives per year, although it is not at all clear that any of this money will fund new social housing.
• Expansion of the Rental Assistance Program to help families earning under $28,000.
  According to the Co-op Housing Federation of BC, this type of housing allowance works well in rental markets with a healthy vacancy rate. But in Vancouver the vacancy rate is under 0.7%, making it difficult to ensure that the allowances won't simply be cancelled out by higher rents.
• A 30% increase in the number of year-round shelter beds.
  More shelter beds are needed in the province, but shelters are not homes and critics say they do not actually solve homelessness.
• Converting 750 existing social housing units to supportive housing for seniors.
  Instead of creating new affordable housing this will actually reduce the number of units available.
• $50 dollar increase in the shelter allowance for people on income assistance.
  This increases the allowable shelter allowance for employable singles to $375. Unfortunately this is still way below the average rent across the province.
• Money for staffing transition houses on a 24-hour basis.